Microsoft Releases New Windows Themes And Wallpapers For Spring

Microsoft yesterday released a set of new themes and wallpapers for Windows devices in their Personalization Gallery. Here is the list of the new themes releases.

One harbinger of spring is the sight of bees visiting the crocuses, apple blossoms, and daffodils that begin to bloom around this time of year. Our first theme, a collection of stunning macro images by photographer Mayur Kotlikar, opens a window into the busy and beautifully colorful world of these essential pollinators.

Brilliant flowers and busy insects are also the subject of the new theme Garden Glimpses, which showcases the work of young photographer Rangan Das. I’m impressed by the painterly richness of his images.

Our next theme features another participant in the Open Call, photographer Ondřej Vlček, whose camera is also focused on the small details of the natural world that might otherwise pass unnoticed: berries gleaming like jewels in the afternoon sun, dried seedpods, ice crystals floating on an almost invisible spider’s web.

If reading my blog post is making you a little sleepy, I have just the thing for you. Charming animal illustrations from A Book of Sleep by artist/writer Il Sung Na bring a dozy sense of contentment to your desktop that may soon have you nodding gently over your keyboard.

Naptime is over! Wake up with the playful joy and energy of dolphins leaping, swimming, and making that clicky, chirping sound. (Well, okay, you’ll have to use your imagination for that part, although the theme does include the sounds of ocean waves, splashes, and seagulls.)

The final collection in today’s roundup transports you from the boundless ocean to arid panoramas of sand and rock for as far as the eye can see. This dramatic new theme for Windows 8 and Windows RT showcases austerely beautiful desert scenes from around the world, and is designed to extend smoothly across dual monitors.